'Shudras meant to serve Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas': Assam CM's remark draws flak

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is facing flak for a casteist remark on social media which read that serving the Brahmins, Ksatriyas and Vaishyas is the natural duty of the Shudras.

Several political leaders slammed Sarma for the post on X, including AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owais who said that Hindutva is antithetical to liberty, equality, fraternity and justice.

"Holding a constitutional position, your oath is to treat every citizen equally. It’s reflected in the unfortunate cruelty that Assam’s Muslims have faced in the past few years. Hindutva is antithetical to Liberty, Equality, Fraternity and Justice," wrote Owaisi on X.

Under fire, the Assam CM issued an apology and deleted the controversial post. He said that one of his team members had posted the sloka from Bhagvad Gita with an incorrect translation.

"As a routine I upload one sloka of Bhagavad Gita every morning on my social media handles. Till date, I have posted 668 slokas. Recently one of my team members posted a sloka from Chapter 18 verse 44 with an incorrect translation. As soon as I noticed the mistake, I promptly deleted the post. The state of Assam reflects a perfect picture of a casteless society, thanks to the reform movement led by Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardeva. If the deleted post has offended anyone, I sincerely apologize," Sarma wrote on X.